By Tracy Zwick
On a Tuesday evening, as dusk settles over Central Park, you might spot Upper West Sider Sibel Canlar in her New York Road Runners (NYRR) coaching gear, leading a group of runners through hill repeats or short bursts known as “intervals.”
She does it with a cheerleader’s flourish, bow in her hair and encouragement on her lips.
“I try to run happy,” Canlar says. And she shares the joy, shouting out props to nearly every passing runner-in-training: “Who doesn’t like to hear: ‘Good job! You look great! You look strong!’”
Canlar exudes positivity, in her coaching, her running, her day-job in finance, and her second shift as mom to a toddler. Perhaps that’s the secret to her 23 marathon finishes, 15 age-group race wins, and success as a NYRR coach, Team for Kids (TFK) mentor, and Central Park Track Club teammate and champion.
Canlar got involved with TFK, a charity-driven running group that’s raised millions for youth and community running programs, in 2010 as a first-time marathoner. TFK supports runners who are also fundraising. It can be a race just to get a spot on TFK, but once you do, there’s free coaching and mentoring provided by professionals and former TFK runners, like Canlar. Mentors are unpaid, but they get to take advantage of TFK’s training, meet new people, and help less-experienced runners. That comes naturally to Canlar, who’s taken plenty of runners under her wing.
Lauren Wadsworth was running her first marathon last year when she was matched with Canlar for mentorship via TFK. “I’d started having small injuries and doubts,” she said: “I’d begun to think ‘there’s no way I can run this.’” Then, as Wadsworth says: “Insert, Sibel.”
Canlar looked at Wadsworth’s mileage and times, and told her “you’ve got this.” Canlar guided her through a training plan that would leave her marathon-ready and feeling strong. “She just totally re-inspired my confidence,” Wadsworth explained. “She pumped me up the whole time, answering all my questions, running with me, texting me before the marathon, even going with me to get my medal engraved after.” Wadsworth added: “Running a marathon can feel like a crazy thing to even comprehend doing if you don’t have a support system.”
Coaching is an extension of Canlar’s own training, and she enjoys sharing what she’s learned in her 15 years of racing. “If there’s one piece of advice I offer aspiring marathoners, it’s this: Race as often as you can.” Even if a race doesn’t go perfectly, she says, “you’re gonna go faster in a race than you would on an individual run, you get to practice hydration and nutrition, and you’ll be part of a community.”
Canlar follows her own advice. This year alone she’s raced the NYRR’s Bronx 10-Miler, its 18-mile Central Park tune-up, a half-marathon in New Hampshire, the Fifth Avenue Mile and, recently, the Chicago Marathon. She’ll run the prestigious Boston Marathon this spring, for the sixth time. “You need to do a bunch of races to build your confidence,” she explained.
She staves off boredom by not running the same routes all the time. Though her apartment is equidistant to Riverside and Central parks, where she routinely trains, she and her husband often drive to places like Rockefeller State Park or Tarrytown to run on the weekends. “We find races and trails outside of the city, just to switch it up and not lose our love of running.”
Though many runners are solitary creatures, preferring to think or listen to music during runs, Canlar loves running with people. “If I had the choice personally, and as a coach, I prefer running in a group to running alone. It’s more social, it’s safer, and it’s more fun — it checks all the ‘more’ boxes,” she said.
When she’s not coaching, mentoring or traveling, Canlar runs with Central Park Track Club. “They have workouts almost every night of the week, and the coaching is great. So are the friendships.”
As runners across the city enter taper mode for the marathon November 2, Canlar has a final piece of advice: “Start being selfish!” she said. “Say ‘I can’t go to a movie or late dinner; I need to take care of myself, go to bed early and not get sick.’” She added: “Run in your race-day outfit ahead of time. Make your plans for pre-race eating, and your reservations to celebrate post-race.”
She’s also got a tip for the critical friends and family members who’ll line the route: Be visible. “Tell your runner where you’ll be, and what you’re wearing. Try to be in something bright that stands out, so it’s easy for them to spot you.” As for what to bring, “it doesn’t hurt to have water and a gel on you, in case your special runner needs to stop and is thirsty.”
Though loving spectators often hope to get a hug or a selfie with their runner, Canlar says don’t be upset if your runner doesn’t see you, or gives a quick thumbs-up as they race by. She blew past her own husband in a race not long ago. But when she heard him scream her name from behind, she backtracked. Though she wanted to hit her time-goal, she couldn’t resist. “He had our 9-month-old son, so of course I was gonna stop!”
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Beautiful! Sibel is the best!!
Amazing! This is very inspiring. Wonderful to read about our neighbors doing incredible things, and serving the community.